Top 5 Early Spring Baetis Nymphs

With the spring Blue Winged Olive (BWO or Baetis) Hatch just around the corner, now is the time to stock up on all of the flies needed to succeed when these bugs start popping! These are the top 5 nymphs to fish leading up to and during spring BWO hatches in Montana.

Olive Micro Mayfly

The Olive Micro Mayfly is an excellent BWO imitation that comes in sizes #14 - #18. I like to fish the #14 as my first fly leading up to big spring BWO hatches and the smaller sizes beneath a large BWO dry fly when trout are pickily munching bugs on the surface.

BWO TB Magic Fly

The tungsten bead on the BWO Magic fly helps get the fly down but the small size means this fly can still be fished beneath a larger Baetis dry. Great as a second fly on a nymph rig, the profile and subtle flash mean this fly to catches fish throughout the hatch.

Purple Juju Baetis

Not as natural looking as the other nymphs on the list, the Purple Juju Baetis is lightweight and very effective. Without a bead the Juju can be fished under small BWO dries and tricks fish that are stuck eating emergers, consistently refusing dries.

Pheasant Tail Lil' Spanker

Possibly the buggiest looking fly on the list, the PT Lil' spanker with it's CDC collar doesn't necessarily need to be dead drifted to catch fish. I have found this fly to pick up fish on the swing more than others. Great to fish below a dry or on your nymph rig.

Light Olive Two Bit Hooker

The light olive Two Bit Hooker just works. I fish this one all spring and it never lets me down! Easily fished below a dry and an excellent addition to a nymph setup.

Swing by our Bozeman fly shop before bugs get frisky and spring fishing commences to stock up on BWO nymphs and all of your fly fishing needs.